Chapter Five: Moria is Entered and

the Seemingly Endless Walking Ends

DISCLAIMER: Credit for the pun in this chapter does not go to me. I've seen it used and referenced multiple times, but I simply had to include it :)

Random Quote: "Today, I got in trouble for calling my little brother a moron. When he asked what a moron was, I told him it was someone who didn't wear enough clothes and needed to put 'more on'. He proceeded to take off his pants and run around screaming 'I'm a moron'. I love my brother. MLIA." ~mylifeisaverage dot com (Such a distracting site when I'm trying to get work done!)

After another week of walking, Adonnenniel realized that this was the worst possible thing to be doing. Ever. She wished in some ways that they had never reached the Pass of Caradhras. That they could have remained skirting the edges of the mountains where at least some sunlight reached.

She utterly hated this. The bitterly cold wind relentlessly pounded her face, her legs felt as if they were on fire, and she couldn't see two feet in front of her. All she could do was blindly follow Estela's footsteps, occasionally stumbling and then latching onto her sister, who was clearly faring better than she was.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, Adonnenniel errantly wished she had done track with her sister at school. At least then all this walking wouldn't feel so unfamiliar to her muscles. She was forcing parts of her body that had never had a day of rigorous exercise to climb this horrid mountain. She also felt the beginnings of a cough in the back of her throat, and her stomach constantly felt as if it were threatening to empty itself.

The hours of this never ending torture blurred together, and Adonnenniel could not tell what time of day it was because everywhere she looked, the mountains loomed over the land like an eternal shadow, casting darkness everywhere. She felt as if it had been years since she had last seen the sun. It had remained hidden behind dark snow clouds ever since they had entered the Pass of Caradhras.

Suddenly, there was a break in the monotony, and Adonnenniel felt like something was wrong.

"There is a fell voice on the air," said a voice some distance in front of her, muffled by the wind. What the heck does he mean by a fell voice? Why does everyone here have to talk with funny words? Adonnenniel wondered briefly. She then felt a new horror dawn. The mountain was shaking. She started to panic.

"It's Saruman!" yelled Gandalf. "He's trying to bring down the mountain!"

And then chaos erupted in a frenzied blur of sound and motion. Adonnenniel stood still, paralyzed by fear and unable to make her limbs respond. And then she felt her sister's hand enclosing around hers. They watched as dark clouds began gathering on the horizon, pushing their way toward the mountain with an unnatural speed.

"It'll be alright," Estela whispered to her. "Gandalf is going to counter Saruman, and we will leave this mountain shortly. Don't tell anyone I told you that." Adonnenniel relaxed. She tried to ignore the relentless shaking that consumed her, and tried to be like her sister, brave and strong. A moment later, she heard Gandalf's voice yelling words in another language, countering Saruman's attack. Adonnenniel felt Estela wrapping her arms around her.

"Hold onto me," Estela murmured calmly, and then the mountain's shaking increased tenfold, and large piles of snow cascaded down the mountainside, heading straight for them. Adonnenniel closed her eyes, bracing herself.

And then the snow was upon them. It was unlike anything Adonnenniel had ever experienced. It engulfed them underneath wave after wave of biting coldness, pressing them further into the snow which already layered the ground. Adonnenniel found herself taking deep breaths every time they resurfaced, only to be forced under again by another deposit of snow. The sensation was like drowning, and her sister's strong arms were a lifeline she clung to desperately.

And then it was over, and her sister was pulling her up from the depths of the snow. When she opened her eyes, she saw they were the first ones to emerge from the snow. Worry swept over her when the others did not appear instantly. But a moment later Legolas appeared. Estela let go of Adonnenniel, and with Legolas started digging through the snow for the others.

A hand emerged, and Estela pulled it up. It belonged to Sam, who promptly pulled Frodo up with him. They were soon followed by Merry and Pippin, and then Aragorn, Gimli, and Boromir and Gandalf. By the time everyone was standing again, Estela was breathing hard and coughing. Adonnenniel walked over to her, and this time it was her arms that wrapped around her sister, comforting and supporting her.

"We cannot pass over the mountain! Let us go under it. Let us go through the mines of Moria," Gimli was arguing several feet ahead. A long silence ensued.

"Let the ring-bearer decide," Gandalf finally said. Adonnenniel crossed her fingers behind her back. Moria, Moria, Moria. Please, please please! I don't know what that is but anything to get off these flippin' mountains! she thought.

"We will go through the mines," said Frodo. Adonnenniel breathed a sigh of relief, but noticed that her sister had suddenly tensed.

"So be it. Come now, we still have a ways to walk," Gandalf said.

Walking to Moria was like knowingly heading towards one's doom.

Estela tried to stay calm, to ignore the turmoil that raged within her. In the movie, the climax of the plot was nearing with each step they took. This journey was not like the others. A stony silence and a nameless fear seemed to be pressing down on the Fellowship like a heavy weight. No comfort was to be found, and nobody spoke.

But as much as she tried to hide it, Estela's nervousness was apparently showing.

"What troubles you, My Lady?" asked Legolas, falling in step with her. She mentally groaned. There we go again with the 'My Lady' thing, she errantly thought.

"Future events," Estela replied tersely. She looked down and saw that her hands were shaking. She tried to control them, but waves of fear engulfed her, pulling her under their all consuming tide.

"What is it that you are afraid of?" he asked.

"Well if you remember, I promised Gandalf that I wouldn't give away anything, so I really can't properly answer that," she reminded him.

"In that case, why don't you tell me what it is you fear in general? Perhaps that would help ease your tension." Estela felt the insane urge to laugh, but answered truthfully.

"I'm afraid of many things," she said honestly. "I'm afraid of roller coasters, spiders, bridges, and family reunions." She ignored his probing gaze, and kept talking. "But mostly I'm afraid of the dark. I know, it's such a cliché fear. But it's more than that. Darkness is losing control of your senses, and being rendered incapable of fighting back. I fear helplessness, and being unable to protect the ones I love." She looked at him, trying to decipher his expression. "That is what this is like. I know what is to come, but I am unable to prevent it. I can only stand by and watch." Legolas was gazing at her intently. He paused for a long moment before responding.

"I saw you during the avalanche. You are brave, My Lady, and when the time comes, I believe that bravery will show. I do not yet know what role you have to play in the fate of Middle Earth, but I do know that it will not be to merely stand by and do nothing."

But before Estela could answer, Gimli exclaimed, "Behold, the walls of Moria!" They had reached Moria.

"Itidin…It mirrors only starlight and moonlight," said Gandalf, looking at the grand door. Adonnenniel giggled.

"Sorry," she said, when everyone turned to look at her. "It's just that's so sappy…I mean really, starlight and moonlight? Haha." Ten pairs of eyes questioned her sanity. "Never mind," she muttered.

Then, a large moon rose over the lake. The markings on the door were illuminated, forming a glowing arch of interlacing letters and symbols. "Well that was unbelievably convenient," grumbled Adonnenniel. She wondered if it had literally happened that way in the movie.

"It reads, 'Speak, friend, and enter,'" Gandalf said. He raised his arms dramatically, staff in hand, and spoke again, this time in another language. The door remained stubbornly closed.

"We might as well settle in," Adonnenniel heard Estela saying to Legolas. "It's going to be a while," she sighed.

"Estela!" Gandalf chided, sounding frustrated. "I heard that. You promised not to give anything away. Even the smallest detail could alter the course of history."

"Sorry," Estela mumbled. Gandalf turned toward the door once more, uttering words in Elvish.

Earlier, Estela had been thinking about preventing the hobbits from throwing stones at the water and waking the monster she knew resided in its murky depths. Now she gritted her teeth, watching as Merry and Pippin threw the rocks.

"Do you know the password?" Gimli asked, sitting down beside Legolas and Estela.

"Yes," she said.

"Well what is it then? At least give Gandalf a hint," he muttered.

"You know I can't do that," she said. "But I'll tell you a secret. It's a type of fruit."

"What?" exclaimed Gimli. "That's absurd!"

"Wait…It's a riddle." Frodo's voice rang loud and clear. "What's the Elvish word for friend?"

"Mellon," said Gandalf. With that, the doors swung open, revealing a penetrating darkness.

Gimli chuckled grudgingly. "That was a poor pun."

"Sorry, I couldn't resist," Estela smiled.

"Come, Estela. Gimli." Gandalf had already walked into Moria. Estela froze. It was so dark in there. She took a deep breath, and forced her feet to move. When she passed through the doors, she clenched her shaking hands and forced herself not to look down. She felt someone's hand slide into hers, and assumed it was Adonnenniel. She squeezed her sister's hand and willed herself to stop trembling and to be brave for her sake.

"Soon you will enjoy the fabled hospitality of the dwarves!" Gimli said. "Roaring fires, malt beer, red meat off the bone. This is the home of my cousin, Balin."

And then Gandalf's staff shone brightly, illuminating the mine. Estela did not look down, but kept her eyes trained in front of her, focusing on the back of Adonnenniel's head. She felt something twist inside of her as the Fellowship recoiled and the anguished cries of Gimli echoed through the mine.

Estela looked at her sister, wondering how she was taking this. But to her immense surprise, Adonnenniel seemed just fine. She was holding hands with Merry and Pippin, muttering comforting words to them. Her sister seemed to be better off when she could distract herself by helping others.

And then a sudden thought dawned on Estela.

Wait a second. Adonnenniel's in front of me. Holding the hobbits' hands. It's not her who grabbed my hand in the dark, she realized with a start. Estela looked up, and saw that it Legolas. Shocked, she jerked away from him. He looked at her, but she could not see his expression in the dark. "My Lady?" he asked.

"What was that about?" she replied, flustered. She was suddenly glad for the darkness, because she felt an inexplicable blush rising in her cheeks. It took her a moment to compose herself and remember to be annoyed at him for calling her the M word again.

"You are afraid of the dark," he stated.

"Yes, I am," she acknowledged, "But I think I can manage on my own, thanks." Estela knew she sounded harsh, but that had been completely uncalled for. Didn't that convey the same message here as it did back home?

As if he had read her thoughts, Legolas looked away from her pointedly. "I meant no offense, and I hope you do not misinterpret my intentions."

For some reason, his words made her mentally cringe. Estela peered up at him, and then suddenly felt that strange feeling rise within her again. It seemed that no matter how hard she tried to suppress it, it kept coming back, stronger each time. She tried to pin the feeling down, to give it a label and make it comprehensible, but it was elusive and fleeting, like trying to catch thin air. She didn't understand it. Estela thought about her friendship with him, and remembered all those long days of endless walking, and how they had found solace in each other's company, oftentimes talking for hours at a time.

In front of her, the hobbits and Adonnenniel had stopped walking, and she nearly bumped into them. Estela realized with a jolt that this was no time to be thinking about this. Painfully, she forced herself to ignore her feelings once more, shoving them deeper and deeper within herself.

"This is no mine…It's a tomb," Boromir, his voice heavy with dread and repulsion.

"No, no, no, no…" Gimli's cries rang loud and clear. Aragorn was looking intently at one of the skeletons. He reached down, and extracted a small object from between the skeletons' ribcage.

"Goblins!" Aragorn shouted.

"We make for the Gap of Rohan! We never should have come here," Boromir said loudly.

Frenzied movement erupted around Estela. Everyone was pulling out their weapons, preparing for a possible attack. In front of her, Adonnenniel was standing still, utterly petrified. Estela suddenly felt helpless. She wished she had something, anything to use as a weapon…

And then she spied a sword, lying on the ground underneath one of the skeletons. Sucking in her breath and willing herself to just do it rather than think about it, she reached beneath the skeleton and pulled out the blade in one fluid motion. It was a small sword, heavy and thick. The weight and the pommel felt strange and foreign in her hand, and she would have much rather preferred a bow and arrow. But she could handle it. She would have to.

Suddenly, Frodo let out a cry. Estela turned around. A long, sinuous tentacle had wrapped itself around his ankle. It was dragging him back toward the lake.

"Frodo!" Aragorn and Boromir rushed forward, grabbing his legs. In one swift motion, Aragorn severed the tentacle and Boromir pulled Frodo to safety. Three more tentacles emerged from the lake, flailing about aimlessly and sending ripples through the lake. One of them snatched Frodo a second time, and he screamed. He was torn from Boromir's arms and flung helplessly into the air. Aragorn and Boromir began hacking at the remaining tentacles, trying to distract the creature so it would drop Frodo.

And then, the monster itself emerged from the lake. It was even scarier than it had been in the movies. Its head was scaly like a reptile's, its eyes two dark orbs. When it opened its mouth, Estela heard Adonnenniel scream.

Estela knew she should do nothing and just stand watching. Let the events play out on their own as Gandalf had wanted. But some kind of primitive instinct swept over Estela, and without thinking, she raised her sword in one hand and threw it straight at the creature's head. By sheer luck, it struck the monster. Grayish green liquid seeped profusely from where it had punctured its skin. She had been aiming for one of the tentacles, but the sword had pierced one of the monster's eyes instead. The creature recoiled and screeched, and then the tentacle holding Frodo flew over top where the others stood and unceremoniously deposited him into Boromir's outstretched arms.

That was not how it was supposed to happen, she thought. But it didn't seem to be affecting anything. Just as had occurred in the movie, the Fellowship ran through the doors, and were promptly enclosed in the dark mines by the monster's still fighting tentacles that pulled a large pile of rocks over the entrance.

The darkness was all consuming. Suddenly, Estela started shaking and felt as if she couldn't breathe. But then someone's arms were around her, holding her tight. Okay, she thought, No way that's Legolas this time. If it is, then he's getting elbowed. Hard.

But sure enough, when Gandalf's staff lit up and the mines were illuminated, she saw that it was Adonnenniel holding her.

"And now, we must face the long dark of Moria," Gandalf said grimly. "Be on your guard. There are older and fouler things than Orcs in the deep places of the world."

"Well that's lovely," Adonnenniel grumbled.

Coming Up Next!

-Another horrible pun! (That I can actually take credit for!)

-More historical references, most likely regarding Greece or Rome!

-Less than subtle foreshadowing about future plot twists!

...Review?